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Penn State Health is committed to ensuring all patients and visitors have access to effective communication while being cared for at our facilities. Ensuring that patients can effectively provide our staff with a clear statement of their medical condition, needs, history, and understand the care team’s assessment of their medical condition and treatment options is essential for quality patient care.

At Penn State Health, language assistance services are available to you for your medical care, free of charge. If your primary language is one other than English, including Sign Language, and you would like to communicate about your medical needs in that language, please inform our staff that you request a medical interpreter. During your stay, our staff can help you gain access to the following language assistance services for your medical care:

  • Over the Phone Interpretation available 24 hours per day/7 days per week
  • Video Remote Interpretation 
  • Professional in-person medical interpreters
  • Medical document translation services

Frequently Asked Questions

What languages are available for my medical interpretation or translation needs?
We provide language services for over 240 languages through spoken interpretation and written translation.

How do I access a medical interpreter?
Please inform our staff that you or a loved one requests a medical interpreter.

Can a family member or friend interpret for me?
Penn State Health recognizes that family/friends are an integral part of the care team. However, we are committed to quality care and that can best be achieved through a qualified and/or certified medical interpreter to ensure accurate and effective communication of medical information between our staff and patients.